Week 5

At my second attempt I got through the course (15/15 again) and here are my reflections:

1. Themes:

a) Besides reducing the amount of sunlight reflected back into space, loss of ice cover on land at the N & S Poles will cause large sea level rise, much greater than loss of ice cover on mountains

b) It is difficult to predict future loss of polar ice caps with accuracy, for example, Arctic sea ice has retreated more rapidly than expected. Hence it is essential to monitor developments closely and improve understanding of ice loss mechanisms at the poles.

c) Ocean acidification (OA) occurs because CO2 is being absorbed in sea water at faster rates than the production of carbonate ions through weathering of rocks and dissolving shells of dead organisms. The resulting chemical interactions leave higher concentrations of acidic hydrogen ions, reducing the pH value of seawater.

d) Invertebrate organisms will be slow to adapt to harmful effects of OA. They are at the bottom of aquatic food chains, so loss of these organisms will lead to loss of larger aquatic species.

2. Difficult:

New terminology & processes: positive/negative mass balance, basal lubrication, phytoplancton, chemistry of OA.

3. Interesting:

OA is a completely new area to me.

4. Research:

Proportion of world's population living in coastal areas likely to be affected by sea level rise:

http://www.greenpeace.org/international/en/campaigns/climate-change/impacts/sea_level_rise/

5. Useful sites:

 

Wikipedia has many pages on climate change and related issues, e.g.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_change_in_the_Arctic

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ocean_acidification